Method and apparatus for handling solids in water suspension



April 11, 1950 L. E. MYLTING y 2,504,081

METHOD AND APPARATUS FDR HANDLING I SOLIDS IN WATER SUSPENSION Filed 001.7. 9, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet l BY @L7M A TTOPNEYS April ll, 1950 L. E. MYLTING METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR HANDLING SOLIDS IN WATER SUSPENSION 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 9, 1946 IIT Mwa

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INVENTOR. AUF/TZ EM/L MYL 7'//V6 NORA/ys Patented pr. 1,4 17.95;()

l UNITEDl STATES orifice '2,504.0s1j1-g l METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR HANDLING f SOLIDS IN WATER SPENSNIfON Lauritz Emil Mylting, Merchantville, N. JL; ats-- signor to The Allen-Sherman-Hoff Company',` Philadelphia, Pa., a cprporationof Pennsyl# Vania Application october 9, isficgsferiai No. 702,369- p 11 claims. (01.302414) The present invention relates generally to the art of handling solids and is particularly lconcerned with a new method of, and new apparatus for, handling solids in water suspension.

Various methods and means have been proposed .f f

for handling solids such as ashes and dust from coal burning furnaces, sand, crushed ore, coal, coke, gravel and the like. One system which has been quite valuable commerically is disclosed in U. S. Patent No. 1,560,361. That system is capable of handling not only the large pieces of solids produced by burning coal having large amounts of clinkering ingredients but also finer solids but it requires considerable quantities of water under high pressure. There are many places where only smaller sized solids are to be handled and where high pressure water is not available or is too costly to use for handling such solids. In such places it is impractical to use that patent system and 'many efforts have been made to provide some other suitable system but none of the many expedients proposed has been satisfactory so far as I am aware.

The present invention, which has proven to `be quite satisfactory, may be briey described as being a system in which solids submerged in a hopper are hydraulically fed into a conduit full of water which travels at a speed sufficiently high to retain the solids in suspension.

The present invention will be better understood by those skilled in the art by reference to the following description and the f accompanying drawings which describe and showa preferred form of the present invention.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view of apparatus embodying the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic side elevational view of the apparatus -of Fig. 1 looking from the top side thereof. l

Fig. 3 'is a'longitudinal, fragmentary, sectional View, partly in elevation, of apparatus shown diagrammatically in Fig. 1 and taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 4.

' Fig. 4 isla transverse sectional Vview taken on line 4-,4 of Fig. 3.

In Figs. 1 and 2 the surge tank- I is connected thru pipe line 2 tothe intake of a centrifugal pump 3'. The outlet from pump 3 communicates with pipe line 4 which has a discharge end at the top of separator tank 5. When liquid and solids are discharged thru pipe line 4 into separator tank v5 the solids may be separated there. in from the water. and discharged thru spout .6, while the water may be collected and retained' A in the lower part of the 2 i' tank. A plurality of \re-v ceiving'h'oppers 1 are disposed above pipe line 2 between surge tank land pump aand the interior; of eachhopper communicates with the interior ofpipe line 2, preferably thru a tting presently' to be described. An equalizer line 8 connects surge tank lI ywith the upper portions of hoppers -1i- Feed `line 9 is 'connected at one end to the lower part of tank 5, has a branch which is provided' withaiioat control valve vI0 thru which fwaterl may be led into tank I and communicates withl pipe 2 in advance of hoppers 1. Preferably, line 2i has valve controlled branches 2| which open into the fittings which connect each hopper 1 with line 2. i v- Figs. 3 and 4 show, in some detail, certain parts of the apparatus shownfmore or less diagram# matically in Figs. l and 2. The receiving hoppers 1 are shown as having open tops provided with screen grates I5 and discharge openings at their bottoms which are closed by plugs I6. Chains I1,- which extend up from plugs I6 and thru grates l5 serve to raise and lower the plugs.

Each illustrated hopper 1 is connected with lines 2 and 9 by means of a fitting I8 which comprises a main section I9 which constitutes a part of line 2, a branch '20 which extends upwardly at right angles thereto and is attached to the bottom of the hopper about the bottom discharge opening, and an inclined branch 2| which is con# nected to line 9 and opens into section I9 at its intersection with branch 20. Preferably, the longitudinal center line of branch 2| extends at an angle of about 45 to the horizontal from the intersection of branch 2I with section I9. Line 9 is provided with valves 2'2 which control the` flow of water into branches 2| of the fittings I8.`

Receiving hoppers 1 may be small in size and may be positioned beneath most any kind of solids hopper. In one instance these receiving hoppers'. 1 were 24 x 24" Vat the top and were about 30" high from the center line of pipe 2 to the top of the hopper. In this instance lines 2 and Il4 were 6" in diameter.

The hopper shown in Figs. 3 and 4 is an ash hopper used with a chain grate stoker. The dis charge end of the stoker is shown at 25 and ashesl discharged from the stoker are collected in the ash hopper '26 which is provided in its lowerf portion with conventional gates 21. A housing.v 28 connects the top of ytwo hoppers 1 with hopper'. 26 and encloses gates 21 to prevent escape of dust. when ash is being transferred from ash hopper' 26 into receiving hoppers 1. The operation of the above described apparatus is substantially as follows: The system is provided initially with a quantity of water which, as shown, lls surge tank I to the top of equalizer 8, and lls line 2 and hoppers Assuming that the system is thus provided with water, that a source of water under somewhat higher pressure isv ava-i1- able, such as the water of separator tank 5, and that plugs I6 are seated in hoppers 1, the apparatus is in condition for initiating the solids handling operation. The pump 3 is started in operation and pumps water thru vpipe line '2 ;I:`rom surge tank I. As the surface level of Awater in tank I drops, float valve II] opens and water flows into the tank from line 9. The same water level will be maintained in surge .tank 1| and in the several hoppers 'I by the equalizer line 8. The action of this equalizer line is quite .important for it insures the maintenance of the system in balance. It prevents removal of all the'water from one hopper and the admission of air thru that hopper into the :pump .and it :also prevents overilowl `oi Water from any hopper. Any leakage of l:Waiter Aor unduly rapid removal of `water from one :hopper is compensated for immediately by Wateriiowing from surge vtank 'I .or otherv -hoppers thruegual-izerline 8 into thehopper in question. Alsoif\;solidsrs,uddenly enter one hopper in volume large enough to cause the Vhopper lto overflow, water .will now to the other hoppers `and tothe surge -tank .thru equalizera `and thus overflow will be prevented.

With pump '3 operating and plug vi6 of one hopper y'I removed from .itsseatfvalve 22adj acent to that ,hopper is opened-and solids are vdischarged into that receiving hopper. The solids-thus discharged into the'receivi-ng hopper will Lbe lsubmerged -in.=water therein Aand:thexwater `level in that. hopper .will rremain substantially unchanged for'fthe reasons Juststated. The solids .will flow by gravity out of the 4hopper and into the l water now-ing `in fitting I8. The .water flowing Vthru bra-nehm of ,the fitting isA preferably under somewhat higher pressure than the 'water' insurge tank I :andthus much 4.of `the water .passing .thru pump :3 .comes :from :line i9 rather than from snrgeitank ,i|. Sincebranch :2l vdischarges water afeinst -solids' vin branch 2|) Aof ,.-t-ting I 8, .the :feeding ofthelsolids is expedited thereby. lThis `feedinge @Milon f may be increasedesomewhatsby .shiftngwbranehfl so that moreofitopens into branch v2|] and may fbe decreased lsomewhatgby shifting branch 2.=| inthe opposite `olirecton. so v:that `more of :it :opens .into pipe iIS. The positioning :of branch Iline ;2=:| asv just described, .results in utiiization of la portion of the .energy :in :the incoming Water landfzalso Aresults lin .a substantial increase in: absolute headl at the suctonf' pumpfS. The practical eiect of this increase; iszthatllnemay beconsiderably longer vthan would :otherwise -be possible.

The water Ais `pumped'rthru lines .-2 and dat a velocity which is abovethe velocityatwhi'ch the Solidfbeing handled Willsettle out of water.. VThis velocity Varies with diierent solids. For example, with ash.fromsprecipitators Which-.does not settle out rapidly, .the ywater v.may travelxat .as Elow a speed as2 to .4 .feetzpersecond With larger size pleoes'of ash, Aup Yto 1"gor :2" in .over-all:.dirnen sions, a .velocity `of 4about r12 feet per second is required to prevent settling out. vSince it .is .desirable not :only toyprevent solids xfrom settling out :of the -'water in the .pipe flines butalso to utilize ithe'water to its maximum capacity for carrying solids, I preferito :take awmajorportion of the :total .water required from '.pipe 49 thru .ainountof flow thrubranch 2|. `to provide valves 22 with an orifice plate or some other means for xing the maximum volume of water `than can pass thru them in a given time. That amount is .the amount which, when added to the Water supplied to the pump from surge :tank I, will `satisfy pump 3. Admission of a greater amount would result in overilow from hoppers l. When the amount of Water to be so admitted is determined the orifice or limitation ofV yalye -opening .isfset :and is -:maintained thereafter. Wherefline 2 rist" in diameter, it-can handle :7190-150690 pounds ,of ashraf minute et water velocities ofvabout 12 feetgper second. It .will Abe understood {tha-,t higher velocities -may lie-usedi-f desired and that lower ,velocities Vmay be .used :with solids @which .Separate .ont any Y0f the watercnlyzatflower speeds.-

"When :the ysolids have `been removed from one hopper l, plug Iunay be seated and -yalve 22 closed in .that fhonper and `the plug of another hopper :may :be :raised andsolids .discharged into and thru ithathonnereasxhas.inst been described.

Manyyvariations:a dmQdQatiQns 0f :the SYS- tem-above (described,` V.ay-be made ,For example, the `pipeline .lfrmay extend ,to a nll instead of to separator tank .-5, in fwhic-h case :some other source of water for greed 1li-ne y9 will be required. rfv-.and-when-the ll .isnsuiciently 'far below hoppers pump 13 :may be omitted. The -outlet v,of line 2, should begfarenough -belOW hoppers l that the water lWill flow fthru the line -at 4a 4velocity high enough to retain the solids in suspension. Also, tank f5 mayibe .replaced by a .tank which does` not :recover the water :from the mixture of waterfand .solids .which pumped-intogthe tank. In .that Icase, '.also, another `:source ,of .Water for feed .line f9 will .be required. .Althol prefer t0 use ttines l-iwitli -the rarious happens, .Some of these :fittings :may lloe replaced by .a 'straight nine nonneetion between the hopper and .line '2. In ithatfcase, `one nttine L8 .should he :installed betweenfsurse-tanksl @and theirst cheaper Lend the valve 22 controlling -ithefinletpi water ,to

the banners. ,solids may be vpiled thigh @in and above `hoppers :l `without any dsadvantageous consequences. :The 4water level :the homers is :maintained :substantially '.oonstant, :as has4 been. described gabovie,.and thisis"itltueqregardless ;of

the height of solids fabove 'fthe alreceiying hopper..

Since .the solids .are fedoutrof ithe :hopperfhydraulically andziintoza Aconduit filled with water'flowing :atarspeed greater `:than-:that--at 'which solids branch.

will settle out, clogging is prevented and the water is utilized to the maximum of its current carrying capacity.

From what has already been said, it will be understood that the present invention provides a simple, effective, and fool-proof system for handling solids of a variety of kinds :and sizes, and that the water may be caused to flow thru the system in such a manner as not only to carry the maximum amount of solids but also to increase the absolute head at the suction of the pump to such :an extent that little or no vacuum exists at that place. The present system is highly efcient in handling solids in small and medium sized particles, is easy and economical to operate, and requires simple and inexpensive apparatus.

Having thus described my invention so -that others skilled in the art may be able to understand and practice the same, I state that what I desire to secure by Letters Patent is defined in what is claimed.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for handling solids comprising a hopper having a discharge opening in its lower portion, a surge tank, an equalizer pipe connecting the upper portion of said hopper to said tank, a conduit leading from said tank and communieating with said discharge opening, and a feed line for conducting liquid into said conduit between said tank and said hopper.

2. Apparatus for handling solids comprising a hopper having a discharge opening in its lower portion, a surge tank, an equalizer pipe connecting the upper portion of said hopper to said tank,`

a pump, a conduit connecting said tank and pump and communicating with said discharge opening, and a feed line for conducting liquid into said conduit between said tank and said hopper.

3. Apparatus for handling solids comprising a hopper having a discharge opening in its lower portion, a surge tank, an equalizer pipe connecting the upper portion of said hopper to said tank, a pump, a conduit connecting said tank and pump .and communicating with said discharge opening, a separator tank for separating liquid and solids, a pipe line connecting said pump to the top of said separator tank, means to remove separated solids from said separator tank, and a feed line for conducting liquid collected in said separator tank into said conduit between said surge tank and said hopper.

4. Apparatus for handling solids comprising a hopper having a discharge opening in its lower portion, a surge tank, an equalizer pipe connecting the upper portion of said hopper to said tank, a conduit leading from said tank and including a fitting having a bran-ch connected to said hopper about said discharge opening, an inclined branch, and a feed line for conducting liquid into said inclined branch.

5. Apparatus for handling solids comprising a hoppel` having a discharge opening in its lower portion, a surge tank, an equalizer pipe connecting the upper portion of said hopper to said tank, a conduit leading from said tank and including a fitting having a main section, a branch at right angles to said main section and connected to said hopper about said discharge opening and a branch inclined at an angle of about 45 to said main section intersecting the main section at its intersection with said other branch, and a feed line for conducting liquid into said inclined 6. Apparatus for handling solids comprising a plurality of hoppers of relatively small capacity, each having a discharge opening in its lower portion, a surge tank, anequalizer pipe connecting the upper portions of said hoppers to said tank, a conduit selectively communicable with each of said discharge openings, and a feed line for conducting liquid into said conduit in advance of the openings of said hoppers.

7. Apparatus for handling solids comprising a plurality of hoppers having discharge openings in their lower portions, a surge tank, an equalizer pipe connecting the upper portions of said hoppers to said tank, a pump, a conduit connecting said tank and pump and including ttings connected to said hoppers about said discharge openings, said fittings having inclined inlet branches, and a feed line for conducting liquid at a predetermined rate into said inlet branches.

8. Apparatus for handling solids comprising a plurality of hoppers having discharge openings in their lower portion, a surge tank, an equalizer pipe connecting the upper portions of said hoppers to said tank, a pump, a conduit connecting said tank and pump and including ttings having branches connected to said hoppers about said discharge opening and inclined inlet branches, a separator tank for separating liquid and solids, a pipe line connecting said pump to the top of said separator tank, means to remove separated solids from said separator tank, and a feed line for conducting liquid collected in said separator tank into said inlet branches and into said surge tank.

9. Apparatus for handling solids comprising a plurality of hoppers of relatively small capacity, each having a discharge opening in its lower portion, a liquid carrying conduit selectively communicable with each of said discharge openings, means for maintaining a substantially constant depth of liquid in the hoppers, said means including a conduit connecting a source oi liquid with the interiors of the hoppers, and a feed line for conducting liquid into the rst said conduit in advance of the openings of said hoppers.

10. Apparatus for handling solids comprising a plurality of hoppers of relatively small capacity, each having a discharge opening in its lower portion, a liquid carrying conduitl selectively communicable with each of said discharge openings, means for maintaining a substantially constant depth of liquid in the hoppers, said means including means for conducting liquid into the interiors of the hoppers, and a feed line for conducting liquid into said conduit in advance of the openings of said hoppers.

1l, Apparatus for handling solids comprising a plurality of hoppers of relatively small capacity, each having a discharge opening in its lower portion, a liquid carrying conduit selectively communicable with each of said discharge openings. a pump connected to said conduit to insure the ilow of liquid through said conduit at a speed sufiiciently high to retain in suspension therein solids discharged thereinto from said hoppers, means for maintaining a substantially constant depth of liquid in the hoppers, said means including means for conducting liquid into the interiors of the hoppers, and a feed line for conducting liquid into said conduit in advance of the openings of said hoppers.

LAURITZ EMIL MYLTING.

No references cited. 

